Perry speaks with lawmakers about campaign in closed-door meeting

Rick Perry spoke to lawmakers tonight--both supporters and those still unsure--in a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill.

Amid a flurry of campaign activity on Capitol Hill today, Gov. Rick Perry met with a group of lawmakers to brief them on continued plans for his campaign and where he stands in the GOP field.

Approximately 15 to 20 congressmen met with Perry for a closed-door meeting at the National Republican Club of Capitol Hill. Not all were Texans, and many had not yet made an endorsement in the race.

The meeting began a few minutes late, and many members stayed at the Capitol to vote on a number of bills on the House floor this afternoon. Although Texas Reps. Kenny Marchant, Sam Johnson and Michael McCaul have all endorsed the governor, none were in attendance at the meeting today.

Many of those who did attend were still undecided about who they were backing for the 2012 GOP bid, but expressed affection for Perry after leaving the meeting.

Rep. Steve Chabot, an eight-term Republican from Ohio who entered Congress during Newt Gingrich’s heyday, was at Perry’s briefing. He said that while he found the governor “very genuine,” he hadn’t settled on a nominee to back yet.

And Rep. Raul Labrador, a Tea Party-backed freshman from Idaho, said he found some of the things Perry mentioned in their meeting to be refreshing. The Texas governor explained to lawmakers at the meeting how the Texas legislature works on a part-time schedule, which is the rationale for Perry’s controversial comments that Congress should work the same way and scale back their salaries.

Labrador said he saw some sense in Perry’s words.

“[Perry’s comments] may be off-putting to some members, but there’s a lot of things that are off-putting to members that we should be doing here more,” he said.

Perry told those assembled that the American people were still behind his campaign, and were excited about it. But while Labrador said that he likes Rick Perry, he admitted he still hasn’t decided who he’ll endorse.

After his time at the Capitol Hill Club, Perry headed back to the Capitol for a discussion on health care with the Congressional Health Care Caucus. He will be flying out to South Carolina tonight.